Graphic Designer

iDE (International Development Enterprises) is a nonprofit organization dedicated to ending poverty. Based in Denver, Colorado, our work within agriculture, sanitation, climate change resilience, and gender equality, stands out because we don’t simply provide handouts. Instead, iDE believes in powering small-scale entrepreneurs and building robust market ecosystems that lay the groundwork for low income and marginalized people to prosper on their own terms. iDE has almost 1,300 global staff, and offices in 10 countries across Africa, Asia and Central America.

iDE is seeking a talented Graphic Designer to join our Communications & Marketing team. The ideal candidate will be responsible for utilizing their creativity and visual communications skills to tell iDE’s story on a global stage. This role is an opportunity to generate exciting unique visualizations that capture the lives of our clients, our approaches, and our impact. You can contribute to building donor trust through impactful visual communication, and create unity across our global teams by maintaining graphic standards across the organization. This role requires a global mindset, a keen understanding of international development, and the ability to distill complex topics into engaging content.

The graphic designer can be based in any of the following locations with existing right to work: United States (Arizona, Colorado, Florida, Illinois, Maryland, Minnesota, New Jersey, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Washington), Ghana, Ethiopia, Mozambique, Zambia, Honduras, United Kingdom. They will be required to occasionally come to our headquarters office in Denver, CO.

If you are a candidate for this role, you have a love for people, new cultures and the challenges faced by low-income communities. You have a genuine interest in international development, you have a knack for building systems, and you are driven to help others understand why iDE’s work is relevant to them. You will collaborate with our country offices around the world and support other departments in headquarters from fundraising to business development. You are organized and methodical. You are the kind of person who can be creative one day and analytical the next.

We offer the opportunity to work with a diverse group of incredibly talented and creative people who are tackling hard problems that keep millions of people in poverty. And you will have the intense satisfaction of delighting this team by showing the world the change they’re making in people’s lives.

If you have the creative talent and passion we need, you may be the person we want on our team. Go here to submit your resume, portfolio, and a cover letter.

Deadline to apply: March 22, 2024

Requirements

Graphic Standards

• Work with the team to revise and maintain graphic standards guidelines for the organization.
• Provide resources, guidelines, and templates for all staff to produce on-brand communications.
• Put processes in place to ensure consistent application of graphic standards across all levels of the organization.

Content Creation

• Create visually compelling graphics and videos for social media, campaigns, and marketing publications.
• Produce innovative, multimedia stories of entrepreneurs ending poverty.
• Generate materials to support marketing, communications, fundraising, and other HQ departments.
• Create digital illustrations including scenes of rural households and marketplaces, people, and landscapes.
• Conceive, draw, and create custom icons as vector art in digital applications.
• Manage vendors, including printers, silkscreens, embroiderers, and merchandising producers.

Photography and Videography

• Take compelling photos that show iDE’s field work, focused on people and their contexts. Using creative elements including light, composition and interesting subject matter, capture documentary style photos that tell a unique story. Edit, retouch, or improve in post production, accurately name files, write captions and upload to our digital asset management software.
• Shoot compelling videos that show iDE’s field work, focused on people and their contexts. Using creative elements including light, composition and interesting subject matter, capture documentary style video that tells our unique story. Edit video and produce both short format video, complete with graphics, sound and translation where necessary.

Technical

• Support the communications department through the use and management of digital applications. Digital application assignments include, but are not limited to: publishing website content through our custom content management system, managing files on Google Drive according to our file management protocol, and assigning appropriate sharing permissions for the files you create.
• Exercise strong file management skills, including creating, managing, organizing, and sharing multiple file sets with detailed specifications.

Systems & Processes

• Contribute to the development and maintenance of a suite of communications resources for use by all staff.
• Maintain digital systems for cataloging and archiving all content sections of the website.
• Maintain existing systems that enable staff to find finished communications products and quickly grasp the broader content and applicability to their needs.

Communications Team Member

• In team collaborations, verbally articulate visual concepts and discuss how graphic elements contribute to the overall message.
• Communicate regularly with global communications team members to maximize clarity, alignment, and collaboration. Proactively engage in brainstorming sessions and during weekly team check ins.
• Contribute to team discussions about communications strategy and digital content performance data. This may require conducting desk research or interviews with internal teams and/or external audiences.
• Engage with HQ and country teams to understand and document their needs and desires with regard to communicating their work and accomplishments.
• Support country communications officers with training and mentoring.

Minimum Qualifications:

• Advanced graphic design skills and video production (shooting/editing) experience
• Advanced Photoshop skills, color correction, photo retouching, resizing, resolution and color space management
• Ability to distill complex topics into simple, easy-to-understand communications.
• Efficient and independent production of quality content.
• Demonstrate creativity and storytelling skills through visual and written elements.
• Proficient in shooting photos and videos for various communication channels.
• Clear, concise, compelling writing for print, video, and digital formats
• Fluent in English, knowledge of another language is a plus
• Associates degree in graphic design or equivalent work experience
• 4-6 years of experience in a communications or marketing role
• 4-6 years of experience in international development preferred

Software Fluency Required:

• Adobe Creative Suite: Photoshop, Illustrator, InDesign, Premiere Pro
• Procreate
• Canva
• Google Suite
• Mural
  

Software Experience Preferred (or a willingness to learn):

• Google Analytics
• Asana
• Adobe After Effects
• Mapbox

Personal Attributes

• Demonstrate empathy, humility, and respect in the workplace

• Ask questions and seeks feedback continuously
• Move quickly and adapt to changing contextual needs in order to solve problems

• Execute day-to-day tasks and works independently
• Desire to work in fast-paced environment and across multiple time zones and languages
• Proven ability to meet deadlines
• Highly creative. Ability to identify insights and generate new solutions.
• Excellent problem-solving ability
• Excellent verbal, intercultural and interpersonal communication skills
• Enthusiastic with a sincere interest in the goals of the organization

Benefits

Physical Demands

• The working conditions and physical demands described here are representative of those the Associate encounters while performing the functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.
• Normal work hours are Mondays through Fridays 8:30am to 5:00pm. Work is performed remotely and in an office environment. Regular international travel required.
• Normally required to see at far and close range, and communicate verbally through listening and speaking
• Frequently required to sit, use hands and fingers to handle and operate objects, devices and controls. Occasionally required to walk, reach with arms, lift and/or move up to 25 pounds.
• Regularly operates telephone, computer, software and printer, copy machine, and similar office machines.

Work Environment

The work environment characteristics described here are representative of those an employee encounters while performing the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions. The noise level in the work environment is usually moderate.

Other:

• Equipment used: all office equipment
• Access stairs, elevator
• International Travel
• Variable Work Hours/Shifts

Diversity Statement

iDE takes pride in our talented and diverse workforce. Minorities, women, and individuals with disabilities are encouraged to apply. Hiring, promotion, and compensation of employees are conducted without regard to race, color, religion, gender, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, national origin, genetics, disability, or age.

EEO Statement

iDE is an equal opportunity employer. We believe every employee has the right to work in an environment that is free from all forms of unlawful discrimination. Consistent with applicable laws, iDE makes all decisions involving any aspect of the employment relationship without regard to race, color, sex, creed, religion, age, ancestry, marriage to a coworker, national origin, citizenship, the presence of any sensory, mental, or physical disability, veteran status, sexual orientation (including transgender status), if applicable, or any other status or characteristic protected by local, state, or federal law. Discrimination and/or harassment based on any of those factors are inconsistent with our philosophy of doing business and will not be tolerated. This policy of non-discrimination applies to all aspects of recruiting and employment, including compensation, benefits, advancement, transfers, terminations, and reductions in force.